Financial Aid

TAP Notice

Changes to TAP Guidelines: Undergraduate students who enter Lehman College for the first time in Summer 2006 will be subject to NEW TAP program pursuit and academic guidelines. Click here to view the new guidelines

You may use TAP to help pay your tuition when you complete at least 12 credits (or their equivalents) in courses that meet your graduation requirements. Courses that may be used to fulfill this requirement include:

General Education

Students who enrolled as of Fall 2002 may include English composition, foreign language, mathematics, natural science, distribution, LEH, and writing intensive classes. Students who enrolled from Fall 1984 to Spring 2002 need Core classes (or their substitutes) but do not need LEH or writing intensive classes. Students transferring with CUNY or SUNY associate degrees have an entirely different set of requirements.

Elective Courses

Only if you need elective courses to earn the 120 minimum number of credits required for graduation. To find out how many elective credits you can use to qualify for TAP, add all the credits you need to earn for your general education, major, and minor (if needed) requirements. Subtract that amount from 120. For example: (see chart below).

Major

Required courses for your major. You must declare your major by the time you have earned 60 credits. Also, if you change your major, you must file a new Declaration of Major and Minor form in SH-106 immediately to continue receiving TAP.

Minor

Required courses for your minor if you are required to take a minor. (If your major does not require a minor, you must count all credits earned in minor classes as elective credits; these credits will be covered by TAP only if they fall within the 120 credits needed for graduation.) Check with an Academic Advisor or Faculty Advisor if you are unsure about this requirement. Declare your minor by the time you have earned 60 credits. Also, if you change your minor, you must file a new Declaration of Major and Minor form in SH-106 immediately to continue receiving TAP.

Even though Student B may not use elective credits to qualify for TAP awards, he or she can still take elective credits without affecting a TAP award as long as he or she is taking at least the minimum number of REQUIRED credits to earn that award.

Because Student B is taking 12 credits required for the Nursing major, he or she is able to add up to six elective credits for this semester without affecting his or her financial aid or tuition payment.

If you repeat a course in which you have already received a grade of C- or better, you may not use that course to qualify for a TAP award. If you choose to retake the course, you must either forfeit your TAP award for that semester or take at least 12 other credits that are required for your degree. (See the above example of Student B and elective credits).

Please Note: If you repeat a course in which you have earned a C– or better, you will receive no additional credits AND the new grade will not be included in your G.P.A. Permission to repeat such courses is rarely granted; for further information, consult the Academic Information and Advisement Center in Shuster 280.

In which you have earned D OR D+

Under normal circumstances, you may not repeat a course in which you have already received a grade of D or D+ and use that course to qualify for a TAP award. Courses in your major in which you have earned a D or D+ grade may be repeated only when a written department policy makes earning a higher grade in that course a requirement for entering or staying within the major. Check with an Academic Advisor or Faculty Advisor if you are unsure about this requirement.

Please Note: If you repeat a course in which you have earned a D or D+, you will receive no additional credits but the new grade will be included in your G.P.A. You have the right to repeat a course only once after receiving a D or D+; both grades remain in your G.P.A. forever. In many cases, students do not need to repeat these courses; for further information, consult the Academic Information and Advisement Center in Shuster 280.

If you are not required to retake the course but choose to retake it anyway, you must either forfeit your TAP award for that semester or take at least 12 other credits that are required for your degree. (See the above example of Student B and elective credits).

You must file a Declaration of Major and Minor Form in Shuster Hall 106 by the time you have earned 60 credits. If you have earned sixty or more credits by the end of the previous semester and have not already filed this form, take a copy of the form (available in Shuster 106) to the Faculty Advisors in the departments that house your major and minor and ask them to sign your form. You must return the Declaration of Major and Minor form to Shuster 106 before the end of the fourth week of the semester or you will lose your eligibility for a TAP award for that semester. Check the Schedule of Classes for the specific deadline for that semester.

If you change (in your own mind) your major and/or your minor, you MUST immediately file a new Declaration of Major and Minor Form to keep your TAP award.

If you wish to collect a summer TAP award, you must earn a combination of at least 24 credits at Lehman in the prior 2 consecutive terms. For instance, you can register part-time for the fall, but you must always register full-time for the spring. Transferred credits CANNOT be included in the 24 credit requirement.

You must meet the standards listed in the TAP Program Pursuit and Academic Progress Charts below. Please Note: In order to keep up with the minimum total credits earned toward your degree (Item 2 in the chart below), you may be required to take more than 12 credits per semester to meet these requirements.

Students entering with CUNY OR SUNY Associate Degrees

Please Note: If you enter Lehman with 60 transfer credits, you may be required to earn at least 15 credits in your first semester at Lehman in order to continue receiving TAP. See the chart above and consult a Financial Aid Counselor in Shuster 136 for further information.

NATURAL SCIENCE—two courses (Check the distribution course list in the current Schedule of Classes)

DISTRIBUTION—one course each for 7 distribution areas (Check the distribution course list in the current Schedule of Classes)

LEH 300 and LEH 301—one topic in each course (Check the topics list in the current Schedule of Classes)

WRITING INTENSIVE CLASSES—four (Only if you have not already taken the minimum required number of writing intensive classes)

Students entering as Transfer Students

If you enter Lehman as a transfer student, you may not have to fulfill all of these general education requirements. For further information on your requirements, see an Academic Advisor in Shuster 280.

Tranfer students entering with CUNY OR SUNY Associate Degrees as of Fall 2002

If you begin your studies at Lehman after having earned a CUNY or SUNY associate degree, you are exempt from all lower level general education requirements (English composition, mathematics, foreign language, natural science, and distribution areas). You are still required to complete LEH 300, LEH 301, and one writing intensive course. In addition, you may be required to take a specific number of elective liberal arts credits in order to complete your graduation requirements. See an Academic Advisor in Shuster 280 for further information.

DISTRIBUTION—one course each for 7 distribution areas (Check the distribution course list in the current Schedule of Classes)

Students entering as Transfer Students

If you entered Lehman as a transfer student, you may not have to fulfill all of these general education requirements. For further information on your requirements, see an Academic Advisor in Shuster 280.

Tranfer students entering with CUNY OR SUNY Associate Degrees as of Fall 2002

If you began your studies at Lehman after having earned a CUNY or SUNY associate degree, you are exempt from all lower level general education requirements (English composition, mathematics, foreign language, natural science, and distribution areas). In addition, you may be required to take a specific number of elective liberal arts credits in order to complete your graduation requirements. See an Academic Advisor in Shuster 280 for further information.

For further information please feel free to contact the following offices: